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Cogwheel rigidity

Authoring team

Cog-wheel rigidity is the phrase used to describe the feeling of periodic resistance to passive movement felt by the examiner in a parkinsonian limb. The phenomenon may be unilateral initially.

The cog-wheeling is in fact a tremor superimposed on lead pipe rigidity - the teeth of the cog are analogous to the tensed parts of the tremor.

Reference

  1. Sveinbjornsdottir S; The clinical symptoms of Parkinson's disease. J Neurochem. 2016 Oct;139 Suppl 1:318-324.

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